Good afternoon. I start to talk on the section of purifying one's own mind. This is a very short section. one's own mind, means the self of not doing. It is the purification of not doing. It is the it of the self. It is the mind of the self. It is the it of not doing. It is the mind of not doing. It is the mind of doing. It is the purity of doing.

[01:02]

It is the it of doing. It is the self of doing. For this reason, it is said that this is the teaching of all Buddhas. So-called all Buddhas are, in some cases, like Maheshwaras. Although there are sameness and differences among Maheshwaras, not all the Maheshwaras are Buddhas. Although Buddhas are like the wheel-turning kings, not all wheel-turning kings are Buddhas. we should endeavor to study such a principle. If we do not learn how Buddhas should be, even if we seem to be fruitlessly enduring hardship, we are only ordinary beings experiencing suffering.

[02:04]

We are not practicing the Buddha way. Not doing, undoing. are like the matter of the donkey has not yet left, but the horse has arrived. Well, the original word in the translation of this word for purifying one's own mind is Ji, Jo, Go, I. Ji means self, or it can be naturally.

[03:07]

Or of itself. And jo is to be pure. Or as a verb, purify. Or noun, purification. Or clean. means no-dust, and go is it, it or its, and ii is mind or thought. As a Buddhist term, this ii is used as a translation of manas, means thinking mind. Or in the Yogacara philosophy, this is ego consciousness, the seventh consciousness.

[04:20]

But here, this verse is much earlier than the Yogacara. It's as old as Shakyamuni Buddha. So, we don't need to consider about such a clarification of the mind. This is just a mind. And what Dogen is saying here does not make sense to me. I mean, I'm not sure whether he wants to say something or not. And he said, purifying of one's own mind, purifying of one's own mind, jijo goi, means,

[05:24]

The self of not doing. Not doing is maksa. Not doing. So, he said, the self, this self, this G, is a G of maksa. Not doing. And self is a form of not-doing, and it's a clarification of not-doing. This go is also not-doing. And it is the it of the self. This go also means this self. And it is the it of not doing. Let's see. It's the mind of the self.

[06:28]

So this go means self, and this i, mind, also is the self. And it is the go of not doing, or maksa, and i of not doing. So, basically that means, Dijogoyi means not doing. And it's all about this self. And, next line, he said, it's a mind, mind of doing. Doing is Bugyo. From the second line. Bugyo. It's the mind of buddho and purity of buddho and goal of buddho and self of buddho.

[07:39]

So, that's all he says. And he said, for this reason, it is said that this is the teaching of all Buddhas. In the first lecture of this Genzo-e, I talked about the two interpretations of the original verse from Dhammapada. One is, you know, the first two lines is about good and bad. That is dichotomy. And Buddha said, we should not do evil, and we should do good. And this is about to be born in the heaven and to go to hell.

[08:46]

This is within samsara. And the third line, Jijo Goi, is... Jijo Goi, purifying one's mind means we should not cling to neither good nor bad or evil. That means we should go beyond good and bad. And that is nirvana. And I introduce two kinds of teachings from Dharmapada. One is about doing good and not doing evil. And another is going beyond good and evil. That is one kind of a traditional interpretation of this verse. One side of Buddhist teaching is ethics or morality of not doing evil and doing good.

[09:48]

And another side of Buddhist teaching, mainly for monks, is we should go beyond good and bad. That is nirvana. We should go beyond any dichotomies. I wonder if the classical Chinese would be translated as mind and also be translated as idea? This one, ee? Idea. I've seen it used as idea. Translated as that. Idea. As in thinking, concepts. So it's not thinking itself, but it is something which is thought. Conceptual thought. Purifying one's conceptual thought. Well, that actually makes it more confusing. Yeah. But at least with the respect of getting beyond the idea of good and bad. And so trying to distinction the actions of different people.

[10:53]

Anyway, if we interpret this verse in this way, one is kind of relative, good and bad, and the other is absolute, going beyond good and bad. This going beyond good and bad means we should do good and not do evil, and yet we should not cling to that discrimination. Of course, you know, all Buddhists, including lay people and monks, should not do evil. You know, Buddha request monks to keep vilayas. That is much stricter code of ethics in order to go beyond good and bad. That means we should do good and we should not do evil without clinging to good and evil. That is how to go beyond good and evil. So, go beyond good and evil doesn't mean we can do either good or evil, or we can ignore such distinction of good and evil, or we can do anything we want.

[12:09]

That is not what going beyond good and evil means. That is one possible interpretation of this verse. And another possible interpretation I introduce is, as I read verse 1 and 2 from Dharmapada, let me read it again. What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday. And our present thought builds our life of tomorrow. Our life is a creation of our mind. So, mind is the basis of our good and evil actions. So, if a man speaks or acts with an impure mind, suffering follows him.

[13:12]

as the wheel of the cart follows the beast that draws the cart. So this impure mind is a source of evil actions. This impure mind means three poisonous minds. Greed, anger or hatred, and ignorance. Because these are, these three minds are, or impure mind is a source of evil actions, and that is a cause of suffering within samsara. And second verse. What we are today comes from our thought of yesterday. And our present thought builds our life of tomorrow. Our life is the creation of our mind. If a man speaks or acts with a pure mind, joy follows him as his own shadow.

[14:18]

So again, pure mind is a mind free from three poisonous minds. If our mind is pure, can do good deeds, we can avoid evil deeds, then our life becomes joy, that is free from sansara, suffering of sansara, or dukkha. So in this case, purifying one's mind is not going beyond good and bad. But because mind is a cause of good and bad actions, we should purify our mind. That means we should become free from three poisonous minds. I think these are two possible traditional interpretations of this one verse. And I think important point of this writing by Dogen about this verse is what he wants to say.

[15:28]

What is his point about this not doing evil and do good and purify your mind. And he discussed extensively about not doing evil and less extensively about doing good. And this part is very short, only three, four, five sentences. This is kind of a question to me. Why he didn't say much about purifying the mind? In order to talk about this, I'd like to introduce one story from a transmission of light written by Keizan Junji.

[16:37]

Keizan was a 4th generation from Dogen. gave a series of Dharma talks on each ancestor from Shakyamuni Buddha until his own teacher, Tetsugikai. And he introduced the story of enlightenment experience of each ancestor. And this is about Dogen Zenji's teacher, Tendo Nyojo Zenji, about purification. Before talking about his story, We need to understand the meaning of his name.

[17:50]

His name was Nyojo in Japanese. Nyo means such or like. Like. And this is as a Chinese translation for tatata, means as it isness or suchness. And jo is the same jo, pure or purity. His name is a kind of a key point of this story. The main case is as follows.

[18:58]

The 50th Patriarch was Priest Tien-tung Lu-jin. Lu-jin is a Chinese pronunciation of his name. Nyo is Ryu, and Jyo is Jin, Ryu-Jin. And Tien-Tung is the name of the temple he was the abbot when Dogen Zenji practiced with Nyo-Jyo. So the 50th patriarch was priest Tien-Tung Ryu-Jin. He studied with Shu-e-do. Shu-e-do is Se-cho in Japanese. Se-cho-chi-kan-da-yo-sho, if you memorize the lineage of our lineage. And Shu-e-do, Se-cho, asked him, disciple Bu-jin,

[20:00]

How can something that has never been soiled be cleansed or cleaned? The Master spent more than a year on this question. Suddenly he was awakened and said, I have hit upon that which is not soiled. This is a kind of a summary of a longer story. The story is as follows. The master was a native of Minzhuo. His initiatory name was Rujin, or Nyojo. After the age of 17, I think this is a mistake, this should be 19, He abandoned doctrinal studies.

[21:03]

That means before that he studied Buddhist teachings, not practicing Zen. But he abandoned doctrinal studies and started to practice Zen when he was 19 years old. It seems first he practiced with Rinzai Zen masters. Then finally he started to practice this Soto Master Shuedo, or Secho Chikan. He joined Shuedo's community and spent a year there, so he was still a new person. He always excelled in Zazen. So he really practiced Zazen wholeheartedly. Once, he asked to be the sanitation officer.

[22:07]

What is a sanitation officer? In original words, Jōtō or Jōchō. So, again, same word. To means heavenly. Jo-cho, what Jo-to means, is the name of the work, the job, within the monastery, the person who cleans the toilet. So, Nyojo asked his teacher, or the abbot, You know, I want to become a jōtō. Then, Shuedo, the abbot, asked him, How can something that was never been sawed be cleaned?

[23:14]

So the job of Jōtō is to clean the toilet. So his question is, if you think toilet is not clean, is not pure, So, as your practice, as a service for the community, if we want to clean something or purify that is not pure, then you use the Dharma. So, how can something that has never been soiled be cleaned? If you can answer that, then I'll appoint you to be the sanitation officer. If you really understand how to clean or purify that is never defiled, then I'll let you serve as a jōtō.

[24:26]

Then, the Master was at a loss. He couldn't answer anything. After several months, he still had no answer. Once, Shuedo invited him to his quarters and asked him, Do you have an answer for our earlier discussion?" So, after several months, the abbot asked Nyōjō again, did you understand what this means? To purify that is never impure. The master was still unable to answer, so he couldn't say anything. And again, Shuedo asked, how can something that has never been soiled be cleaned?

[25:34]

And the master did not answer for more than a year. So the abbot kept asking, how do you clean that is never defiled? More than one year. Again, Shiodo asked, can you answer? The master still could not answer. So it took him a long time. Shiodo said, if you can climb out of your old rut, rut, r-u-t, you will be free. then you will be able to answer. So, in order to find this answer, you need to climb out of your old rut or nest. Hearing this, the Master investigated with all his strength and determination.

[26:47]

One day, he was suddenly awakened. Somehow he was suddenly awakened. He went to Shiodo's quarters and told him, I can answer. Shiodo said, this time say it. The Master said, I have hit upon that which is not soiled. That means, ideally, met with that thing which is never soiled. Even before he finished speaking, a shadow hit him. The Master broke out in sweat and bowed. Then a shadow gave him his approval. This is the story. And then, Within Soto Zen tradition, when this story, Showa Kumaksa, is interpreted, always this story was quote.

[28:03]

Although this story is later than Dogen. And it seems this story is made up by Keizan. I mean, there's no such evidence. Nojo had such question and answer with his teacher. No one told about this story, even Dogen. And this story never appeared in any other text. but Denkōroku. There's no text in China, never talked about this story. And according to Nyōjō's biography, That is a part of the so-called Nyojo Goroku, the recorded sayings of Tendo Nyojo.

[29:16]

It said, He was dying until he really faced his death. He never told or publicized who was his teacher, from whom he received transmission. So, scholars think Inojo never told that kind of experience even to his disciples. So, I'm pretty sure this story is made up by Keizan. And also, only in Denkoroku, the story of Dogenzenji's enlightenment, so-called dropping of body and mind, appeared. I'm pretty sure that story also made up by Keizan, in order to explain the, how can I say,

[30:19]

so-called enlightenment experience of all the ancestors. Because Dogenzen himself never, you know, talked about such experience he had, about his own, you know, doping of body and mind. But the thing he recorded, about dropping off body and mind is his conversation, questions and answers between Dogen and Nyozo. And it takes more than a few times, and they are really discuss in detail. So it's not like a one-time experience. When he was sitting, Nyojo was walking, and the person next to him was sleeping, and Nyojo hit that person and shouting. That then is dropping off body and mind. What do you do if you just simply sleep?

[31:25]

then somehow Dogen awakened, same as Nojo suddenly awakened. This kind of enlightenment story is not so, how can I say, well connected with Dogen's teaching. So I think these are the made-up stories by Keizan. Anyway. The point of this story in Denkonoku about Nyōjō's experience, enlightenment, is purify which is never impure. I think that point is, I think, exactly what Dōgen wants to say in Shogun Maksa in this writing.

[32:28]

I mean, for him, you know, the Anuttara Samyak Sambodhi, that is the basis he was discussing about this good and evil. That means, that's why he said good is unequal and evil is unequal. There's no such distinction or dichotomies. And that means purity. And that entire network of interdependent origination, sometimes Dogen calls that is a mountain, mountain, and in which all of us are coming and going.

[33:29]

This entirety of interdependent origination throughout space and time, this is the reality of all beings. And this reality of all beings is itself Anuttara Samyak Sambodhi, or supreme awakening, in which there is no such distinction between purity and impurity, or purity and defilement, or good and bad, samsara and nirvana. Because those are all part of this, you know, network. That means this network itself cannot be soiled, cannot be defiled. Because the soil or dust or defilement can be part of this.

[34:36]

And there is no so-called dust which can come and defile this entirety. So, I think Phap Dogen wants to say, we are within that mountain, and awakening to that reality is purifying our mind. And actually, when we awaken to that reality, that means we are part of it. So, in that sense, that is a terrifying Fat is never impure. Our practice is awakening to the awakening. Our practice is manifesting which is never hidden.

[35:38]

Does it make sense? I'm not sure. But that is the fact, anyway, that is the fact Dōgen said in Genjo Kōan, manifestation of Kōan, or absolute reality. Our practice is not open our eyes to some so-called reality or truth that is hidden until that time. But, as he said in Tenzo Kyokun, the reality is never hidden. Nothing can be hidden. It's always in front of us. So, it's not a matter of we need to find it through certain so-called enlightenment experience. our practice is awakened to that reality we are already in.

[36:38]

We are born within that reality, and living within that reality, and make mistakes in that reality, and we are deluded in that reality, and we die within that reality. So, delusion is, of course, within that reality. And we keep awakening to that reality, which is never hidden. So, Uchiyama Roshi often, always said, when we use the word awakening, this doesn't mean now until so far we have been sleeping and dreaming, And finally, our eyes open, we wake up, and we start to see the reality instead of dream.

[37:40]

That is not awakening in a Buddhist term, or as Buddhadharma means. But awakening is not awakening of this deluded or sleeping person. He always said, you know, the reality of all beings awakened to the reality of all beings itself. So there's no subject-object separation. And that is what we do in our Zazen. Zazen is not a method by sleeping person wake up and see the reality. But we are sitting and put our entire body and mind on the ground of this reality that is beyond good and bad, beyond defilement and purity.

[38:43]

That is how we manifest this koan through our body and mind. So, in that sense, our practice is purifying something which is never revived. So, cleaning the toilet does not mean, because toilet is dirty, or soiled, you know, we have to clean. If that is the meaning of purification or cleaning, when the toilet is not dirty, we don't need to clean. Only when we feel the toilet is dirty, we have to clean. But our practice is not only when we feel I am dirty. But, you know, we need to practice always whether our body and mind is dirty or not dirty.

[39:50]

We keep practice. So our practice is not a method of cleaning because our body and mind is dirty. So, in that sense, Dogen's approach to this verse, not to do anything evil, doing everything good and purify one's own mind, is different from either interpretation. of the party birth. There is no kind of, how can I say, separation between good and bad and beyond good and bad.

[40:56]

As he said, good and bad is not doing evil. is, or not to do evil, is what we hear when we listen to the teaching of Anuttara Samyak Sambodhi. That's what he said in the section of not doing evil. So, not doing evil is not our kind of a self-power effort. making distinction between good and evil, and we have to make choice to do good, and we have to make effort not to do evil. But when we awaken to this reality, the teaching of this reality, absolute reality, sounds like not to do anything evil.

[41:58]

That is what Dogen said, and that is our practice. When we awaken to that absolute reality, as Dogen said, all evil deeds become not-doing, or makusa. And we take a vow to practice in that attitude. Keep awakening to this reality and try to manifest this reality within our life. then our life naturally becomes not doing evil. That is how, I think, Dogen Zenji interpreted this verse. Does it make sense? Yes?

[42:59]

Good. OK. So, for this reason, it is said that this is a teaching of all Buddhas. This is not only, as Dogen said, this is not only teaching, but this is a teaching, practice, and verification of all Buddhas. So this is not a teaching from enlightened Buddhas to us, derided human beings, that you, because you are not yet awakened to that reality, you have to careful not to do evil. But this is a fact that has been done by all Buddhas. So, because we wish to be a Buddha's disciple, a student, we try to follow the lifestyle of Buddhas. That's what this is the teaching of all Buddhas means.

[44:02]

So-called all Buddhas are, in some cases, like Maheshwaras. Although there are sameness and differences among Maheshwaras, not all the Maheshwaras are Buddhas. I really don't understand what this means, but according to commentaries, this means, you know, Maheshwara is the king of the three, or triple world. Triple world means world of desire, world of material, and world of non-material, or karma. I don't have time to discuss the details of those things. And it says, this Maheshwara, the emperor of the triple world, it says, has three bodies.

[45:11]

similar like a dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanakaya. So, it's partly similar with Buddhas. But Dogen said, Baha is superior and not Buddhas. Wheel-turning kings are the same. It says Buddha has 32, 13 particular forms in his body. If you are interested in what are those 32, please check Buddhist dictionary. It's kind of strange thing. And, yeah, it's something like Buddha's tongue can reach the forehead.

[46:21]

And it says not only Buddha's, but also we Tang kings have the same 32 marks. But Dogen pointed, will-turning kings are not Buddhas. So, basically what he's saying is we should understand what Buddhas mean. Buddhas are not certain particular forms, or even the three bodies. But, this is Buddha. This is Dharmakaya and Nirvanakaya. It's kind of very unique. understanding of what Buddha is. We should endeavor to study such a principle if we do not learn how Buddhas should be. Even if we seem to be fruitlessly enduring hardship to practice Buddha's way, we are only ordinary beings experiencing suffering.

[47:30]

We are not practicing the Buddha way. So we should really understand what Buddha's Ahh and what Buddha's practice means. And the last sentence in this section is, Not doing, undoing, ahh, like the butter of the donkey has The matter of the donkey has not yet left, but the horse has arrived. This not doing is maksa and doing is bhugyo. So, shoak maksa and shuzen bhugyo. Not doing of evil and doing of good. The matter of the donkey has not yet left, but the matter of the horse has already arrived.

[48:33]

This is kind of a common expression in Zen literature. Donkey and horse are similar living beings, but from human point of view, horses are superior to donkeys, Horses are larger and can run faster and are much more useful. And donkeys are not so useful. So donkeys and horses are used as a kind of analogy of deluded human beings and enlightened persons. or delusion and enlightenment. These are basically the same, but somehow different. Or another word can be a karmic self and a universal self.

[49:42]

Karmic self means, you know, we are a collection of past experiences. So we are a collection of karmas. Accumulation of causes and conditions. Because I have certain karma, that means I have certain particular experiences in my life. You know, I think in this way and I behave in this way. Because I was born in Japan and My first language was Japanese, still is Japanese, so I'm still thinking in Japanese. But somehow I live in this country, America, and people don't understand Japanese, so I have to speak in English. So thinking in Japanese and talking in English is my karma. And this is really difficult karma.

[50:45]

But, you know, this is how I have to live, using this body and mind. You know, using my own particular karma. Somehow I have to use this karma to practice and express Dharma. So, I'm like a donkey. but somehow using this donkey's body and mind, if my talk and if my understanding and if my practice is really expressing this entire total reality, this donkey's body is expressing this universal, formless, boundless reality through this limited donkey's body. So if we are really awakened to that reality and try to express that reality, before donkey has left, horse has arrived.

[52:02]

This is the meaning That means, in order to practice, awaken to the reality and practice and express the reality, we don't need to throw our donkey's body away. We don't need to give up my karma. And this is the only tool I can use. This donkey's body is the only tool I can use to express this universal, boundless reality. So, what Dogen is saying here is this not-doing of evil, or short maksa, and doing of good, or good deeds, or bugyo. Both maksa and bugyo are, you know, the way donkey function as horse.

[53:11]

Or donkey and horse are, both are there within this practice of not doing and doing. Or maksa and bugyo, both are there. I think that is what he's saying. I'm not sure, but at least this is my understanding at this moment. So, my understanding may change any time. So, please don't believe what I'm saying, but please think and try to understand by your own what Dogen is saying. And that is how we study Shobo Gendo and how we deepen our understanding of what Dogen really wants to say. And, you know, I have been studying and practicing Dogen's teachings for about 35 years.

[54:21]

My understanding has been changes almost always. So this is only a temporal understanding. So my understanding may change next time I talk on the same writing. So please study and try to understand what he's saying using these strange expressions. That is how we deepen our understanding and practice. OK. Because we only have one more lecture, I need to go further. We still have a quite long section. That is about the question and answer between, in Japanese, Choka Dorin and Hakurakuten or Hakukyoin.

[55:30]

This is a kind of a very famous Koan story. So, I think you already know the story. This is a story about Zen Master. whose name was Chōka-dō-rin. And a layperson whose name was Haku-kyoi, or Haku-rakuten. Haku-kyoi, or Haku-rakuten, was a very stiff, very well-known Chinese poet, and also a government officer. All Chinese government officers should be appointed. Otherwise they couldn't become a government officer. Anyway.

[56:35]

Choka Dorin, this Zen master, was in the lineage of so-called Gozo Shu. Gozu means ox head, ox head school. This school is kind of a branch, a branch of Zen school from fourth ancestor, Daii Doushin Daiyosho, right? 3rd? 4th? I think 4th.

[57:44]

And 5th is Daiman Kōnin Daiyōshō. And 5th Daiman Kōnin is a teacher of 6th ancestor, Huinan. And this Gōzushū, Ox Head School, is divided, separated from this kind of main scheme Zen. at the time of the fourth ancestor. After he taught the fifth ancestor, he went to somewhere and found a practitioner whose name was Hou Yu. And this person was called Gozu Hōyū. Gozu is the name of the mountain where this person lived. That's why his school was called Gozushū.

[58:49]

Anyway, this Chōka Dōrin is, I think, seventh generation from Gozu Hōyū. Anyway, he lived from 741—the date is in this text—741 to 824. So he's, I think, about the same generation with people like Sekito and Basho's disciples, like Hyakujo Eikai, Nansen, all those people. So 8th to 9th century. And it said, this Zen master, when visiting 13th temple, found a big pine tree, huge pine tree, on which 13th dad has a nest.

[60:08]

and somehow he made a decision to live next to the bird on the tree. That's why his name was Choka. Choka, or biaoke, literally means bird's nest. because he lived next to badness. So he was living on the tree. And so, when Chokadourin was living on the tree, this layperson, Hakkyoi, visited. Hakukyoi was like a governor of that area, that province.

[61:11]

Somehow he, Hakukyoi, had the reputation of this strange master and visited this bird nest. And he was also, Hakukyoi was a very practitioner of Zen, and his teacher was Zen Master Bukkō Nyōman. Bukkō Nyōman was Mazu, or Baso's, disciple. So, within the lineage, Hakkyoi is a Dharma grandson of Baso Dōgen. That is how Baso Dōgen said in the first two sentences. Dogen Zenji only quotes one question and answer. That is, what is the essential meaning of the Dharma?

[62:18]

Then Dogen said, do not do anything evil. Do everything good. Then Hakkyoi said, if it is so, Even a three-year-old child can express it. Then Dorin said, a three-year-old child can say so, but an eighty-year-old person cannot practice it. Before this question and answer, there's another one, and that is also kind of interesting. So, when Hyakukyoi visited this bird nest, Zen Master was sitting on a tree. And Hyakukyoi, the governor, said, it's dangerous to live in such a place.

[63:25]

Then Zen Master said, you are more dangerous. Your life is much more dangerous. The world is underneath you. The firewoods are burning. Does it make sense? That means you are living within the hill. And your life as a government officer in a world of politics is much more dangerous. And the original word, dōrin, used in the text is the nature of consciousness. I think this means karmic consciousness. It does not stop. It keeps going. And that is more dangerous than living on the tree.

[64:32]

Then, in the original story in Keitoku Dento Roku, then Hakkyoi asked, if so, so that means, teach me how can I live more safely? What is a safe way of life, if my way of life is dangerous? That is the meaning of this question, what is the essence of Buddhadharma, or essential meaning. of this Dharma, of Buddha Dharma. Then, Dorin said, not doing any evil and do everything good. You know, the first two lines of this verse. Then, The rest of the questions and answers are the same as Dogen's quote.

[65:46]

So this is the story. So basically what this story means is, you know, this teaching of don't do anything evil and practice everything good is a very simple teaching. Even a three-year-old child can see and understand such a teaching. If that is an essential teaching of Buddhadharma, why we have to study it? And I already know it. You know, a government officer should be also a student of Confucius teaching, and a poet. So they know everything important about Chinese so-called philosophy.

[66:53]

In order to become a government officer, everyone needs to take a kind of examination called kakyo. And that examination was really difficult. In order to pass that examination, people had to study so hard, almost everything. So, basically what Hakkyoi is saying is, I already know such a thing, what it means. Then, Dorin, the Zen master, said, a three-year-old boy or child can say such a teaching, but even an eighty-year-old person cannot really practice it.

[68:00]

practice this teaching. So, the point is why this simple teaching, not doing any evil and practice everything good, can be the essential teaching of entire Buddhism. And this verse, as it is said, you know, the general precept of all seven Buddhas. And the verse itself says this is the teaching of all Buddhas. So this is really the essential teaching of all Buddhas. So the point of this story is why. why such a simple teaching can be the essence of the entire Buddhist teaching. And that is what Dogen has been discussing in this writing so far.

[69:05]

And first, Dogen Zenji kind of commented about Hakukyoi's understanding, and he criticized that Hakukyoi didn't understand the point of the Zen master. Truly, Hakukyoi was a descendant of the general Haku, So he was a descendant of a well-known kind of a military person in his family, family lineage. And an unprecedented great poet. He was still considered to be one of the greatest poets in China. And people called him a man of letters for the 24 lifetimes. I don't really understand what this means. It seems like this person has been a poet for 24 lifetimes.

[70:26]

Or another interpretation is he was one of the 24 greatest poets in China. I don't know if it is correct. And he was sometimes called Manjushri, sometimes called Maitreya. I don't know if it's true or not. And his name was well-known, and he dominated the world of literature. So he was really a well-known and respected poet. And even in Japan, his collection of his poems and writings were used as a text to study Chinese literature. But Dogen said, nevertheless, he was a beginner and a late learner in the Buddha way.

[71:36]

That means he didn't really understand what the Buddha way is. Moreover, it seems that he had not seen the essential teaching of not doing of any evil, doing of all good deeds, even in his dream. A kyoi thought that Dorin simply recognized the preference of being mind ushin, unsaid, not to do anything evil, do everything good. This means the preference of being mind. Maybe this is not a good translation. The original expression is shukō, Shu means to go, and ko means mukau, to go to a certain direction.

[72:56]

So shuko means kind of to go towards a certain direction as a result of making a choice. And this being mind is wu-shin. Of course, wu-shin is an opposition of mu-shin. Mu-shin is without kind of a discriminating mind. So wu-shin is a discriminating mind. So because with the other kind of making choice to go this way instead of that way, based on discriminating mind. Doge is saying, Kyoi thought that the Master's teaching of not doing evil and doing of all good,

[74:06]

is a kind of a making choice. Instead of doing evil, we should do good, as a kind of a calculating mind. If we do good, we will have received a good result or good reward. If we do evil things, we will receive evil or bad or painful result. So, as a kind of a calculation, to do good is better than to do bad. So, we have to do good. I think that's the common understanding of this kind of ethical or moralistic teaching. And even within Buddhism, you know, it's commonly you know, teach, taught, if you do good thing, you can be born in the heaven, so you should do good thing.

[75:11]

And if you do evil thing, you need to go to the hell, so you should not do, you know, evil thing. This is very, I think, common teaching within Buddhist country. I think in Christianity, they teach same thing, I think. And Dogen's criticism against Haku Kyoi was Kyoi understood Dorin's teaching of this not doing evil and doing good on that level. So he did not know and had not heard of the principle that not doing evil and doing good is both from ancient times and also always fresh teaching in Buddhadharma.

[76:13]

This is very old, as old as Buddhism, and yet it is always fresh, always new teaching. He spoke in this way because he had no experience in Buddhadharma. This he is Hakkyoi, and he did not have the strength of the Dharma. I think this is a good place to stop. The rest of this writing he tried to how can I say, make it clear, the point of the Hakkyoi's mistakes and the fact is a correct understanding about this teaching of not doing evil and doing good.

[77:19]

So, hopefully we can finish this tomorrow. In India, it says the wheel or chakra refers to certain weapons. only by the great king have. I think it's like a chariot, you know, with which they can conquer all enemies. That is the meaning of this wheel, kind of as a weapon.

[78:26]

Buddha was born. It's Shakyamuni Buddha was born. It said someone, some kind of a religious person came who could tell the future of the baby. And when he saw baby Buddha, he saw this person might be the re-returning king. That king conquer and govern entire world. So, if this baby stays at home, he will become a will-turning king. If he left home and becomes a religious practitioner, he will become Buddha. So, Buddha's teaching is called a Dharma wheel instead of a weapon to conquer enemy.

[79:35]

You know, this Buddha's teaching is a kind of a weapon to conquer delusions or suffering. So this wheel-turning king is a kind of a legendary king in India. Any questions? Okay, thank you.

[80:20]

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